Dr. Raj Balkaran: Thriving in Tumultuous Times to Winter Solstice: Embodying the Path of the Sun (12/19-12/21)

Join us for an engaging philosophy series with Dr. Raj Balkaran (Sanskrit Scholar) as we explore the “medicine stories” of Dūrga, Śakti, and Vedic symbology. He will share incredible insight, imagery, unpack new perspectives on the ethics of yoga principles, and support you in understanding how these lessons apply to modern day householders and professionals. As a seasoned online educator based in Toronto, Dr. Raj enjoys a thriving consulting practice and manages multiple courses in philosophy and ethics through the Indian Wisdom School, speaking in Switzerland, Germany, India, USA, Canada, and more.

Lecture Details:

• Fri: Dec 19th, 6-8pm: Thriving in Tumultuous Times:
  Insights from the Ancients

• Sat: Dec 20th, 12:30-2:30pm: Yoga Philosophy for Householders:
  Bridging World Renunciation and World Engagement 

• Sun: Dec 21st, 12:30-2:30pm: Yoga & the Winter Solstice: Embodying the Path of the Sun

• Cost: $30 per session ($25/per Cultivate Warrior membership - any session you prefer)

• Workshop topics outlined in more detail below

Sessions include:

• Academic lecture  (No death by PowerPoint)

• Lineal wisdom teachings and esoteric symbolisms 

• Live storytelling (Best “Magic Carpet Ride” in Cleveland)

• Relevance to yoga and application to modern lived experience 

• Sanskrit māntra chanting 

• Open discussion / Q&A

Friday: Thriving in Tumultuous Times: Insights from the Ancients

How do we stay grounded, clear, and purposeful in a world that feels increasingly chaotic? This talk draws on the enduring wisdom of ancient Sanskrit texts, like the Yoga Sūtras and the Bhagavad Gītā, to help us meet modern challenges with resilience and grace.

Together, we’ll explore how these timeless teachings offer not just spiritual insight, but practical tools for protecting our time, preserving our energy, and engaging in meaningful, conscious resistance. This is a space for clarity, courage, and connection—guided by voices that have withstood the tests of time. Open to all; no background in philosophy required.

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Saturday: Yoga Philosophy for Householders:Bridging World Renunciation and World Engagement

Yoga teacher trainings rightly emphasize the Yoga Sūtras as a foundational text—but often overlook a crucial point: the Sūtras were composed by ascetics, for ascetics. Their radical inward turn offers deep spiritual insight, but can feel at odds with the everyday realities of householder life.

How, then, do we honor the Sūtras’ wisdom while fully immersed in the world?

This tension between renunciation and engagement—world denial and world affirmation—lies at the heart of the Indian tradition. And perhaps no text addresses it more masterfully than the Bhagavad Gītā. In this session, we’ll turn to the Gītā as our guide to living a life of depth, clarity, and spiritual purpose without abandoning our duties, relationships, or worldly commitments.  This is the yoga of integration—being in the world, but not of it.

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Sunday: Yoga & the Winter Solstice: Embodying the Path of the Sun

Since ancient times, sages have observed the precise and powerful journey of the Sun across the heavens—not just as a physical event, but as a mirror of our own inner rhythms. The solstices and equinoxes, the cardinal points of the solar cycle, mark key junctures in both the outer cosmos and the inner self.

What does this celestial movement have to do with yoga?

From the creation of Sūrya Namaskār to the subtle energies governing the solar journey through the day and year, this talk explores how solar awareness can illuminate your practice—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. You’ll come away with a deeper understanding of how the Sun’s cycle shapes the inner fire of transformation, and how to harness this knowledge as both practitioner and teacher.

*No refunds less than 30-days of the event.

(email to: jenraeyoga@gmail.com for more information).